Uconn

Connecticut's Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis shoots over Penn State's Alex Bentley (20) during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game in Storrs, Conn., Thursday, Dec. 6, 2012. Mosqueda-Lewis was top scorer with 25 total points. Connecticut won 67-52. (AP Photo/Jessica Hill)

STORRS — A week ago, when sophomore Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis came back from a concussion that had sidelined her for a game, she responded with a sluggish practice. Afterward, she apologized to her teammates.

Thursday, she played for the first time since a severe thigh bruise and swollen knee; no apology was necessary.

On a night when the Huskies as a team struggled to get into any kind of offensive rhythm, Mosqueda-Lewis scored a season-high 25 points to lead No. 2-ranked UConn to a 67-52 victory over No. 10 Penn State in front of a crowd of 8,072 at Gampel Pavilion.

She admitted that as a freshman, she probably wouldn't have been capable of taking the team on her shoulders against a tough, physical opponent when the rest of the team was struggling.

"In all honesty, it probably wouldn't have gone my way," Mosqueda-Lewis said. "It probably would have had to have been Bria (Hartley) that brought us back or Stef (Dolson) or someone like that, because last year I don't know if my state of mind was at that place to be the one to be depended upon by the team."

Mosqueda-Lewis has struggled physically this season with the concussion against Purdue and the quad injury against Maryland, but her head is right where it needs to be.

Coming off the concussion injury, she wasn't willing to cut herself any slack because the last two seasons have shown the Huskies as a program that failure to get better early in the season can cost you dearly at the Final Four.

"I apologized to my teammates because they deserve better," Mosqueda-Lewis said. "They deserve my best every single day. I am putting everything out on the court for them, and they are doing the same for me. So you know, if I don't bring that one day, that could be the one practice I miss getting better at rebounding or something else, and that is the reason we lose in a national semifinal Final Four game. I don't want to have even a practice be the reason why our team loses."

Coach Geno Auriemma said Mosqueda-Lewis, who fouled out of the whistle-plagued game (38 fouls between the two teams) with 56.2 seconds to play, was the reason the Huskies won Thursday. She certainly hit the biggest basket of the game.

With the Huskies leading, 32-29, four minutes into the second half, Penn State's best player, Maggie Lucas missed a wide-open 3-pointer to tie. Mosqueda-Lewis responded at the other end by making a three that boosted UConn's lead to six. The Huskies' lead never fell below six the rest of the way.

"She's a good player and she played like it," Penn State coach Coquese Washington said. "I thought that was probably the biggest play of the game because it was a big momentum swing right there. And she's just a fantastic shooter and she led their team tonight."

As a team, the Huskies shot only 41.1 percent from the field (23 of 56) and turned the ball over a season-high 20 times. Their defense held Penn State to 33.9 percent shooting (20 of 59), however, and forced the Lions into 26 turnovers, including during five straight possessions midway through the second half.

Trailing by just nine points, 45-36, Penn State made those five turnovers in a row to allow the Huskies to open up a 15-point lead, 51-36. Two steals by Moriah Jefferson and one each from Brianna Banks and Mosqueda-Lewis led to three baskets in 44 seconds.

Banks (10 points) was the only other Husky in double-figure scoring, with Bria Hartley scoring eight.

Penn State was led by Lucas' 15 points on 5-for-12 shooting, 10 points from Ariel Edwards and eight points and eight rebounds from Mia Nickson.

The Lions (6-2) had no answer for the Huskies' defensive pressure or the desire Mosqueda-Lewis displayed in carrying the Huskies to their fourth win over a ranked opponent, including two over Top 10 teams this week.

"You know, I saw we were having a little trouble," said Mosqueda-Lewis, who had four steals and five rebounds. "We weren't really getting going offensively, and sometimes the best way to get your team going offensively is to get a couple steals, to get a couple deflections, just get something going for the team. I think once we got into the press I tried to dive on the floor for the ball and do stuff like that."

This marked the first game all season that the Huskies have trailed by more than one possession. In fact, through the first seven games, the only time UConn trailed was 2-0 in the 64-point season-opening win over College of Charleston.

After giving up the first basket of the season, the Huskies had gone 289 minutes, 14 seconds of playing time without trailing before Penn State took a 16-14 lead with 10:46 to play in the first half on a transition layup by Lucas. Lucas had tied the game with a 3-pointer on the Lady Lions' previous possession.

Penn State's lead lasted only 14 seconds with Breanna Stewart tying the game with a pair of free throws. But then the Lady Lions regained the lead, 18-16, on a layup by Edwards.

Twenty seconds later, UConn tied it on a drive by Banks, then followed with a layup by Hartley on its next possession to take the lead for good.

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